TALE OF THE TAPE: FEB. 5

Friday, Feb. 5, 7:00 p.m. Wells Fargo Arena

Coming off the AHL All-Star Break, Chicago begins a home-and-home weekend series with Iowa starting Friday in Des Moines before moving on to the Allstate Arena Saturday night. The Wolves have won four of five games (4-1-0-0) versus the Wild this season.

The Wolves have won eight straight games at the Wells Fargo Arena and are 9-0-1-1 all-time against the Wild in Des Moines.

Both wins on Wild ice this season occurred in dramatic fashion. In the last meeting between the teams on Jan. 26, the Wolves pulled out a 4-3 win after JORDAN CARON tied the game with 2:39 left in regulation and PAT CANNONE scored the game-winner 41 seconds into overtime to complete his hat trick. On Dec. 8, Chicago broke a third-period tie with a pair of goals scored 4:27 apart in a 5-3 triumph. CANNONE has scored the game-winning goal in the last two games against Iowa.

Since Christmas, the Wild have sported a .607 winning percentage, claiming eight wins in 14 outings (8-5-1-0) after starting the season with five wins in 32 contests.

The Wild were represented at the AHL All-Star Classic by rookie defenseman Gustav Olofsson, who starred at Colorado College.

By The Numbers

9: Third-period goals for the Wolves against the Wild this season, which accounts for 60 percent of the team’s production. To put those nine goals in perspective, the Wolves have scored five goals in the first and second periods combined.

10/12: The Wolves are in the midst of playing 10 of 12 games away from home, a stretch lasting from Jan. 17 through Feb. 14.

Player Spotlight

#12 Pat Cannone – Center, #6 Andre Benoit – Defenseman

PAT CANNONE and ANDRE BENOIT played a hand in helping the Central Division All- Stars secure top honors at the AHL All-Star Challenge held Feb. 1 at the Onondaga County War Memorial Arena in Syracuse. The duo was also instrumental in leading the Western Conference to a 19-14 win over the Eastern Conference at the AHL All- Star Skills Competition conducted Jan. 31.

CANNONE was named Most Valuable Player of the All-Star Challenge, totaling three goals, one assist and a deciding shootout goal. This year’s Classic featured a new format as players were split into four divisions for nine-minute games contested in round-robin fashion. CANNONE scored a goal and BENOIT assisted on the game- winner as the Central Division defeated the Atlantic Division in the championship game, 4-0. BENOIT finished with 1 goal and 2 assists on the night in making his first all-star appearance.

CANNONE added to his trophy case by capturing the shooting accuracy title at the Skills Competition, hitting four targets on five shots. In addition, CANNONE took part in the puck control relay and breakaway relay while BENOIT participated in the rapid fire and breakaway relay competitions.

Player Spotlight

#23 Zack Mitchell – Right Wing

Zack Mitchell continues to find his groove with the Iowa Wild.

The Ontario native scored twice and added an assist to lead Iowa to a win over Charlotte in his squad’s final game before the All-Star Break on Jan. 30. Through 46 games this season, the winger has 16 goals — one shy of his season-high last year — and 10 assists.

The 22-year-old Mitchell was signed as a free agent by the Wild in March and recorded 35 points in 76 games with the Iowa Wild last season, which was good enough for second on the team in goals and fourth overall in points. He led all Iowa rookies in points and set new team rookie records for goals, assists and points in a season.